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iMac Intel 21.5" EMC 2428 GPU Card Replacement

Introduction

Use this guide to install a new GPU card.

What you need

  1. iMac Intel 21.5" EMC 2428 GPU Card Replacement, Access Door: step 1, image 1 of 2 iMac Intel 21.5" EMC 2428 GPU Card Replacement, Access Door: step 1, image 2 of 2

    • Unplug your iMac's AC cord along with any peripheral devices.

    • Lay your iMac face-down on a soft, clean surface as shown.

    • Be sure there isn't any dirt or debris on your work surface, as it may scratch the glass panel on the front of your iMac. We recommend placing a towel between the iMac and the work surface.

    • Loosen the three Phillips screws securing the access door to the bottom edge of your iMac.

    • All three screws will remain captive in the access door.

    • Remove the access door.

    Edit

  2. iMac Intel 21.5" EMC 2428 GPU Card Replacement, RAM: step 2, image 1 of 3 iMac Intel 21.5" EMC 2428 GPU Card Replacement, RAM: step 2, image 2 of 3 iMac Intel 21.5" EMC 2428 GPU Card Replacement, RAM: step 2, image 3 of 3

    • Gently slide the black plastic RAM pull tab out from the RAM slot.

    • Pull the black plastic tab away from the bottom edge of the iMac to eject the module(s) on that side of the RAM bay.

    • This may require a bit of force.

    Edit

  3. iMac Intel 21.5" EMC 2428 GPU Card Replacement: step 3, image 1 of 1

    • Slide the old RAM module(s) out of their slots in the RAM bay and set them aside.

    Edit

  4. iMac Intel 21.5" EMC 2428 GPU Card Replacement: step 4, image 1 of 3 iMac Intel 21.5" EMC 2428 GPU Card Replacement: step 4, image 2 of 3 iMac Intel 21.5" EMC 2428 GPU Card Replacement: step 4, image 3 of 3

    • Repeat the process in the previous steps to remove the RAM module(s) from the other side of the RAM bay.

    Edit

  5. iMac Intel 21.5" EMC 2428 GPU Card Replacement: step 5, image 1 of 3 iMac Intel 21.5" EMC 2428 GPU Card Replacement: step 5, image 2 of 3 iMac Intel 21.5" EMC 2428 GPU Card Replacement: step 5, image 3 of 3

    • When installing new RAM modules, it is important to orient them correctly.

    • Be sure the small notch cut into each RAM module (shown in the first picture) mates with the protrusion in each RAM slot (shown in the second picture).

    • Your iMac has four RAM slots. Be sure to slide each RAM module into its slot horizontally. This will prevent getting the modules stuck between two of the adjacent slots.

    • Once you have oriented the new RAM modules correctly, gently slide them completely into the iMac and use your thumbs to firmly seat them in their sockets.

    Edit

  6. iMac Intel 21.5" EMC 2428 GPU Card Replacement, Glass Panel: step 6, image 1 of 2 iMac Intel 21.5" EMC 2428 GPU Card Replacement, Glass Panel: step 6, image 2 of 2
    Tool used on this step:
    Heavy-Duty Suction Cups (Pair)
    $14.95
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    • Before beginning, unplug your iMac and lay it on a soft surface as shown.

    • Stick a suction cup near each of the two top corners of the glass panel.

    • To attach the suction cups we sell, first position the suction cup with the movable handle parallel to the face of the glass panel. While lightly holding the suction cup against the glass, raise the movable handle until it is parallel with the other handle.

    • If your suction cups refuse to stick, try cleaning both the glass panel and the suction cup with a mild solvent.

    Edit

  7. iMac Intel 21.5" EMC 2428 GPU Card Replacement: step 7, image 1 of 2 iMac Intel 21.5" EMC 2428 GPU Card Replacement: step 7, image 2 of 2

    • Gently lift the glass panel perpendicular to the face of the LCD enough to clear the steel mounting pins attached along the underside of the top edge of the glass panel.

    • Pull the glass panel away from the lower edge of the iMac and carefully set it aside.

    • During reinstallation, be sure to meticulously clean the inside of the glass panel and the face of the LCD as any dust or fingerprints trapped inside will be annoyingly visible when the machine is turned on.

    Edit

  8. iMac Intel 21.5" EMC 2428 GPU Card Replacement, Display: step 8, image 1 of 3 iMac Intel 21.5" EMC 2428 GPU Card Replacement, Display: step 8, image 2 of 3 iMac Intel 21.5" EMC 2428 GPU Card Replacement, Display: step 8, image 3 of 3

    • Remove the eight 8 mm T10 Torx screws securing the display to the outer case.

    • The last two pictures are detail shots of each side of the display.

    Edit

  9. iMac Intel 21.5" EMC 2428 GPU Card Replacement: step 9, image 1 of 1

    • Slightly lift the top edge of the display out of the outer case.

    • Do not lift it too much. There are several cables attaching the display to the logic board. Twisting or pulling the display assembly with the cables attached will damage your iMac.

    Edit

  10. iMac Intel 21.5" EMC 2428 GPU Card Replacement: step 10, image 1 of 2 iMac Intel 21.5" EMC 2428 GPU Card Replacement: step 10, image 2 of 2

    • Pull the vertical sync cable connector out of its socket on the LED driver board near the top left corner of your iMac.

    Edit

  11. iMac Intel 21.5" EMC 2428 GPU Card Replacement: step 11, image 1 of 2 iMac Intel 21.5" EMC 2428 GPU Card Replacement: step 11, image 2 of 2

    • Rotate the display out of the outer case enough to disconnect the LED backlight power cable from the LED driver board.

    • Disconnect the LED backlight power cable by depressing the locking mechanism while pulling the connector away from its socket (toward the bottom edge of the iMac).

    Edit

  12. iMac Intel 21.5" EMC 2428 GPU Card Replacement: step 12, image 1 of 3 iMac Intel 21.5" EMC 2428 GPU Card Replacement: step 12, image 2 of 3 iMac Intel 21.5" EMC 2428 GPU Card Replacement: step 12, image 3 of 3

    • Grab the plastic pull tab secured to the display data cable lock and rotate it towards upwards.

    • Pull the display data cable straight out of its socket on the logic board.

    • Do not lift up on the display data cable, as its socket is very fragile. Pull the cable parallel to the face of the logic board.

    Edit

  13. iMac Intel 21.5" EMC 2428 GPU Card Replacement: step 13, image 1 of 2 iMac Intel 21.5" EMC 2428 GPU Card Replacement: step 13, image 2 of 2

    • Disconnect the LCD thermal sensor cable connector from its socket on the logic board.

    Edit

  14. iMac Intel 21.5" EMC 2428 GPU Card Replacement: step 14, image 1 of 1

    • Carefully pull the display toward the top edge of your iMac and lift it out of the outer case, minding any cables that may get caught.

    Edit

  15. iMac Intel 21.5" EMC 2428 GPU Card Replacement, Optical Drive: step 15, image 1 of 1

    • From here, the repair will be easier if you flip the computer around so the base is facing you.

    • Remove the following four screws:

    • One 9.3 mm T10 Torx screw with a large head

    • Three 9.3 mm T10 Torx screws with a normal sized head

    Edit

  16. iMac Intel 21.5" EMC 2428 GPU Card Replacement: step 16, image 1 of 2 iMac Intel 21.5" EMC 2428 GPU Card Replacement: step 16, image 2 of 2

    • Pull the optical drive thermal sensor connector straight up from its socket on the logic board. Pull parallel to the board.

    Edit

  17. iMac Intel 21.5" EMC 2428 GPU Card Replacement: step 17, image 1 of 2 iMac Intel 21.5" EMC 2428 GPU Card Replacement: step 17, image 2 of 2

    • Lift the inner edge of the optical drive and maneuver its connector past the GPU frame attached to the logic board.

    • Carefully pull the optical drive off its mounting pins on the right side of the outer case to gain clearance for disconnecting the optical drive cable.

    • Allow the optical drive to hang down as you de-route the optical drive thermal sensor connector from behind the GPU heat sink.

    Edit

  19. iMac Intel 21.5" EMC 2428 GPU Card Replacement: step 18, image 1 of 1

    • Disconnect the optical drive cable by pulling its connector away from the optical drive.

    • Remove the optical drive from the iMac.

    Edit

  20. iMac Intel 21.5" EMC 2428 GPU Card Replacement, Optical Drive Fan: step 19, image 1 of 1

    • Remove the single 13 mm T10 Torx screw securing the optical drive fan to the outer case.

    Edit

  21. iMac Intel 21.5" EMC 2428 GPU Card Replacement: step 20, image 1 of 1

    • Pull the optical drive fan off the pins attached to the outer case.

    Edit

  22. iMac Intel 21.5" EMC 2428 GPU Card Replacement: step 21, image 1 of 1

    • Pull the optical drive fan connector away from its socket on the logic board.

    • Remove the optical drive fan from the iMac.

    Edit

  23. iMac Intel 21.5" EMC 2428 GPU Card Replacement, Logic Board: step 22, image 1 of 1

    • In the proceeding steps, you will disconnect the following cables:

    • SD Board

    • Left/Right Speaker and Microphone

    • Audio Port

    • Wi-Fi Antenna

    • Right Temperature Sensor, Bluetooth/Ambient Light Sensor/Camera/Left Temperature, and Hard Drive Fan

    • CPU Fan/Ambient Temperature and Power Button

    • IR Sensor

    Edit

  24. iMac Intel 21.5" EMC 2428 GPU Card Replacement: step 23, image 1 of 1

    • Pull the SD board cable out of its socket on the logic board.

    Edit

  25. iMac Intel 21.5" EMC 2428 GPU Card Replacement: step 24, image 1 of 3 iMac Intel 21.5" EMC 2428 GPU Card Replacement: step 24, image 2 of 3 iMac Intel 21.5" EMC 2428 GPU Card Replacement: step 24, image 3 of 3

    • Disconnect the microphone, left speaker, and right speaker cables by pulling their connectors toward the right side of the iMac.

    Edit

  26. iMac Intel 21.5" EMC 2428 GPU Card Replacement: step 25, image 1 of 2 iMac Intel 21.5" EMC 2428 GPU Card Replacement: step 25, image 2 of 2

    • Use the flat end of a spudger to pry all three AirPort antenna connectors up from their sockets on the AirPort board.

    • During reinstallation, connect the cable with no stripes to the socket marked CH0, the cable with one stripe to CH1, and the cable with two stripes to CH2.

    Edit

  27. iMac Intel 21.5" EMC 2428 GPU Card Replacement: step 26, image 1 of 1

    • Pull the hard drive fan connector toward the top edge of the iMac to disconnect it from its socket on the logic board.

    Edit

  28. iMac Intel 21.5" EMC 2428 GPU Card Replacement: step 27, image 1 of 1

    • Use your thumbnails on both sides of the Bluetooth/ambient light sensor/camera/left temperature connector to push it toward the top edge of the iMac and out of its socket on the logic board.

    Edit

  29. iMac Intel 21.5" EMC 2428 GPU Card Replacement: step 28, image 1 of 1

    • Use your thumbnails to push the right temperature sensor connector toward the top edge of the iMac and out of its socket.

    Edit

  30. iMac Intel 21.5" EMC 2428 GPU Card Replacement: step 29, image 1 of 1

    • Pull the CPU fan/ambient temperature sensor connector toward the bottom left edge of the iMac and out of its socket on the logic board.

    Edit

  31. iMac Intel 21.5" EMC 2428 GPU Card Replacement: step 30, image 1 of 1

    • Pull the power button connector toward the bottom left corner of the iMac to disconnect it from its socket on the logic board.

    Edit

  32. iMac Intel 21.5" EMC 2428 GPU Card Replacement: step 31, image 1 of 2 iMac Intel 21.5" EMC 2428 GPU Card Replacement: step 31, image 2 of 2

    • Use your thumbs to push the IR sensor connector toward the top edge of the iMac and out of its socket on the logic board.

    • Pull the IR sensor board up from behind the front face of the outer case.

    • Remove the IR sensor and set it aside.

    Edit

  33. iMac Intel 21.5" EMC 2428 GPU Card Replacement: step 32, image 1 of 2 iMac Intel 21.5" EMC 2428 GPU Card Replacement: step 32, image 2 of 2

    • Pull the audio port cable connector toward the left side of the iMac to disconnect it from the logic board.

    • Do not pull the cable toward yourself (away from the front face of the logic board) as you disconnect it.

    • Peel the audio port cable off the front face of the logic board and let it hang down as shown in the second picture.

    Edit

  34. iMac Intel 21.5" EMC 2428 GPU Card Replacement: step 33, image 1 of 1

    • Remove the following seven screws:

    • Two 7 mm T10 torx screws

    • One 30 mm T10 Torx screw

    • Two 25 mm T10 Torx screws

    • Two 21 mm T10 Torx screws

    Edit

  35. iMac Intel 21.5" EMC 2428 GPU Card Replacement: step 34, image 1 of 2 iMac Intel 21.5" EMC 2428 GPU Card Replacement: step 34, image 2 of 2

    • Remove the following four screws:

    • One 9.3 mm T10 coarse-threaded screw

    • One 25 mm T10 coarse-threaded screw

    • Two 22 mm fine-threaded screws

    • Pull the upper right and lower left corners of the power supply away from the rear case to dislodge the mounting posts attached to the power supply's corners.

    Edit

  36. iMac Intel 21.5" EMC 2428 GPU Card Replacement: step 35, image 1 of 2 iMac Intel 21.5" EMC 2428 GPU Card Replacement: step 35, image 2 of 2

    • Carefully lift the power supply out of the outer case and rotate it to expose the cable lock as shown, minding the DC-out and AC-in cables still attaching it to the iMac.

    • Disconnect the DC-out cable by depressing the locking mechanism on the connector while you pull the connector away from its socket on the power supply.

    • Once the locking mechanism has cleared the socket, pull the DC-in connector away from the power supply.

    Edit

  37. iMac Intel 21.5" EMC 2428 GPU Card Replacement: step 36, image 1 of 1

    • Disconnect the AC-In cable by depressing the locking mechanism while pulling the connector away from its socket.

    • Remove the power supply from the outer case.

    Edit

  38. iMac Intel 21.5" EMC 2428 GPU Card Replacement: step 37, image 1 of 1

    • Remove the plastic wall that is installed directly to the right of the LED driver board.

    Edit

  39. iMac Intel 21.5" EMC 2428 GPU Card Replacement: step 38, image 1 of 2 iMac Intel 21.5" EMC 2428 GPU Card Replacement: step 38, image 2 of 2

    • Slightly pull the logic board away from the back of the outer case, then lift it upward to clear the lower front face of the outer case.

    Edit

  40. iMac Intel 21.5" EMC 2428 GPU Card Replacement: step 39, image 1 of 1

    • Disconnect the LCD temperature cable by pulling its connector up and out of its socket on the logic board.

    Edit

  41. iMac Intel 21.5" EMC 2428 GPU Card Replacement: step 40, image 1 of 2 iMac Intel 21.5" EMC 2428 GPU Card Replacement: step 40, image 2 of 2

    • Depress the locking mechanism and carefully pull the DC-In cable out of its socket on the back of the logic board.

    Edit

  42. iMac Intel 21.5" EMC 2428 GPU Card Replacement: step 41, image 1 of 1

    • Being careful not to damage the socket on the logic board, gently pull the hard drive SATA data cable straight out of its socket on the logic board.

    Edit

  43. iMac Intel 21.5" EMC 2428 GPU Card Replacement: step 42, image 1 of 1

    • Pull the hard drive power cable connector out of its socket on the logic board.

    Edit

  44. iMac Intel 21.5" EMC 2428 GPU Card Replacement: step 43, image 1 of 1

    • Remove the logic board from the outer case, minding any cables that may get caught.

    • When reinstalling the logic board, plug in a thunderbolt cable and a USB cable into the USB port closest to the headphone/microphone ports before tightening the logic board screws to ensure proper alignment.

    Edit

  45. iMac Intel 21.5" EMC 2428 GPU Card Replacement, GPU Assembly: step 44, image 1 of 1

    • Remove the strip of tape securing the GPU thermal sensor cable to the logic board.

    Edit

  46. iMac Intel 21.5" EMC 2428 GPU Card Replacement: step 45, image 1 of 1

    • Remove the following three screws:

    • One 4.2 mm T10 Torx screw

    • Two 5 mm T8 Torx screws

    Edit

  47. iMac Intel 21.5" EMC 2428 GPU Card Replacement: step 46, image 1 of 1

    • Grab the GPU thermal sensor cable connector and pull it straight up and out of its socket on the logic board.

    • Do not pull the connector out by its cables.

    Edit

  48. iMac Intel 21.5" EMC 2428 GPU Card Replacement: step 47, image 1 of 1

    • Lift the GPU heat sink slightly and pull the GPU board out of its socket on the logic board.

    Edit

  49. iMac Intel 21.5" EMC 2428 GPU Card Replacement, GPU Card: step 48, image 1 of 2 iMac Intel 21.5" EMC 2428 GPU Card Replacement, GPU Card: step 48, image 2 of 2

    • Remove the four 6.5 mm T8 Torx screws securing the GPU heat sink to the GPU.

    • It may be necessary to use a #1 screwdriver to hold the sockets on the GPU heat sink stationary as you loosen the T8 Torx screws.

    Edit

  50. iMac Intel 21.5" EMC 2428 GPU Card Replacement: step 49, image 1 of 1

    • Remove the clamping bracket from the back of the GPU.

    Edit

  51. iMac Intel 21.5" EMC 2428 GPU Card Replacement: step 50, image 1 of 3 iMac Intel 21.5" EMC 2428 GPU Card Replacement: step 50, image 2 of 3 iMac Intel 21.5" EMC 2428 GPU Card Replacement: step 50, image 3 of 3

    • Remove the GPU from the GPU heat sink.

    • Make sure to apply a new layer of thermal paste to the face of the GPU (the area boxed in red) before reattaching the heat sink. Our thermal paste guide makes it easy.

    • Before installing new thermal paste and mounting a new GPU to the GPU heat sink, use the flat end of a spudger to push the VRAM thermal goop closer together so it will better contact the VRAM when the GPU is installed.

    • Do not use thermal paste on the VRAM chips (the black boxes around the GPU). The VRAM chips are shorter than the GPU, and therefore need thermal pads to make contact with the cooling element. Replacing the thermal pads with paste will cause the card to overheat and can potentially ruin it.

    Edit
Conclusion

To reassemble your device, follow these instructions in reverse order.

85 other people completed this guide.

22 Comments

hi! please tell me what type of grafic card is usen in i macs? i know AGP PCI standars but i t is not them

tnks

galishnicov - Reply

Hi all, I'm new to computer repair, basically I just want to save my mac. It appears that the graphics card has gone out (it's about 5 yrs. old). Where can I find a good replacement and what would be an appropriate price range? Also, do you have any additional tips for physically replacing it. How can I tell if I need the whole piece or just a section of it? I have seen prices range from $4.00 - $500.00.

Please help!

DEE

Dee - Reply

AT galishnicov

Did you ever get a response to your graphics card question; I would like to know as well?

Dee - Reply

Hi There, mine is a late 2011 model iMac desktop and I'm having trouble with the display screen. It's coming up with pink and yellow vertical strips. The tech says it could be graphics card. The online spec for my late 2011 model iMac suggests it is - (AMD Radeon HD 6750M graphics processor with 512MB of GDDR5 memory). Can you please tell me if that's right. Thank You.

vivieux24 - Reply

it is "AMD Radeon HD 6750M 512 MB" you can click the apple logo in the top left then, "About This Mac" then, check under "Graphics:".

Ethan Stiles -

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